The
Human Rights Defender of Armenia, Ms. Anahit Manasyan, is participating in the
5th Global Forum "Against the Crime of Genocide" held on December
12–13, under the theme “Strengthening the effectiveness of international
mechanisms for early warning and early response to the risk of genocide and other
atrocity crimes”.
As
part of the event, on December 12, Ms. Manasyan served as a panelist in the
first panel discussion titled "Evolving risk Factors For Genocide and
Other Atrocity Crimes and Role of Small Countries in Promoting the Genocide Prevention
Agenda". The session addressed issues of human rights protection, genocide
prevention, and international cooperation, presenting the experiences and
approaches of different countries.
In
her remarks, the Defender underscored the importance of hosting discussions on
genocide prevention and expressed gratitude for the invitation. Ms. Manasyan
referred to topics within the scope of the Defender’s mandate, emphasizing that
hate speech and hate-based crimes often lead to acts of genocide.
"In
this context, we are speaking about two different manifestations:
1.
When the state supports and organizes the dissemination of hate speech;
2.
When hate speech spreads without state support.
This
also applies to hate speech based on ethnic grounds, which is an extremely
dangerous phenomenon. States must unite their efforts and combat this issue.
They need to have appropriate mechanisms to prevent such occurrences," the
Defender stated.
Ms.
Manasyan also addressed the forced displacement of the whole ethnic Armenian
population from Nagorno-Karabakh in 2023, stressing that, despite the
continuously improving international mechanisms for human rights protection and
the rule of law, the rights of individuals forcibly displaced from their
ancestral homes and subjected to inhumane treatment have not yet been restored.
She further highlighted the dangers and irreversible consequences of the
state-sponsored policy of Armenophobia implemented in Azerbaijan.
"If
we fail to prevent such incidents, we may witness their recurrence. Therefore,
it is crucial to consolidate all our efforts to address shortcomings in the
human rights protection system, cases of genocide, and illegal actions,"
she emphasized. In this regard, the Defender stressed the importance of all
modern states developing a comprehensive national policy to prevent genocide
and eliminate discrimination.
Ms.
Manasyan also touched upon the protection and promotion of the rights of
national and religious minorities, emphasizing that this is one of the key
priorities of her work.
In
this context, she highlighted that the rights of national minorities must be
fully protected and promoted in Armenia.
The
panel discussion featured former Minister of Foreign Affairs of Armenia Zohrab
Mnatsakanyan, Co-Founder of the Coalition for Genocide Response Ewelina Ochab,
and Slovenian National Focal point for the Responsibility to Protect, Blanka
Jamnisek. A video address was delivered by Ambassador Christian
Guillermet-Fernandez, Chair of the Global Action Against Mass Atrocity Crimes.
The session was moderated by Elizabeth Pramendorfer, Geneva Representative of
the Global Centre for the Responsibility to Protect.
The
opening of the 5th Global Forum "Against the Crime of Genocide"
included remarks by the President of the Republic of Armenia, Vahagn
Khachaturyan, and a message from UN Secretary-General António Guterres,
dedicated to the International Day of Commemoration and Dignity of the Victims
of the Crime of Genocide and the Prevention of this Crime. Other speakers
included Armenia’s Minister of Foreign Affairs Ararat Mirzoyan, UN High
Commissioner for Human Rights Volker Türk (via video address), Acting Special
Adviser on the Prevention of Genocide at the UN, Virginia Gamba (via video
address), former President of Latvia Egils Levits, and President of the
International Association of Genocide Scholars Melanie O’Brien.
Հայերեն
